Vice President Constantino Chiwenga yesterday led the monthly clean-up campaign in Beatrice where he urged the nation to maintain clean environments to keep diseases at bay.
And in the wake of a horror crash that claimed four lives
of school-going children in the area on Wednesday, VP Chiwenga said there were
plans to re-test drivers and re-examine vehicles before they were allowed on
the country’s roads to curb road carnage.
Zimbabwe has been recording a number of fatal road
accidents of late, mainly due to negligence by drivers and unroadworthy vehicles.
Yesterday, VP Chiwenga visited the accident scene where
four school children died while 18 people, mostly learners were injured, in a
road accident along the Harare-Masvingo highway on Wednesday.
The accident involved an Inter Africa bus carrying 59 passengers
and a T35 truck that was carrying Karrenboon Primary School children.
The injured are being treated at Beatrice and Chitungwiza
hospitals.
VP Chiwenga met some of the children who were injured
during the accident, and directed that they be taken to Chitungwiza Central
Hospital for further treatment and examination.
Addressing hundreds of people at a clean-up campaign in
Beatrice yesterday, VP Chiwenga said Government would foot the medical bills
for the injured pupils.
“What happened touched the Government and the nation at
large, and yesterday (Thursday) while we were standing in for President
Mnangagwa who is currently in Malawi (the President returned last night), we
gave our condolence message to the families who lost their loved ones,” he said.
“We also said that all those who were being treated here in
Beatrice be transported to Chitungwiza where the others are, so that the
Government assists them.
“We are going to inform the President that some of the cars
and drivers should be examined to see if they are fit to be on the road. They
must go for driving tests again because the number of accidents in this country
is quite devastating; the carnage cannot be accepted, it must be stopped.”
VP Chiwenga said the Government would build a new school in
the Beatrice area, to minimise distances travelled by children to school, and
in turn, curb accidents involving learners.
“We asked the head and she said there were children who
were walking long distances to go to school, so we asked if there was land for
us to build a school so that the children do not have to walk long distances
and she said the land was there,” he said.
“So we are going to consult the relevant Ministry of
Primary and Secondary Education so that the new school is built and accidents
are minimised. We cannot keep on losing young lives like this.”
VP Chiwenga reiterated President Mnangagwa’s call for peace
before, during and after the harmonised elections.
“President Mnangagwa recently announced the date for this
year’s election which will be held on August 23 this year,” he said. “Our
leader said that he does not want violence during the election period, before,
during and after the elections. No forms of violence will be condoned.
“President Mnangagwa wishes that we all register to vote
and ensure the party (Zanu PF)’s resounding victory.”
VP Chiwenga implored citizens to keep their environments
clean and desist from littering to curb diseases.
This month’s national clean-up campaign focuses on
recycling plastic waste to reduce the burden on local authorities in waste
collection.
In Mashonaland Central, the clean-up was done at Gweshe
Business Centre in Chiweshe, where Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and
Devolution Monica Mavhunga led the proceedings.
She said upscaling the recycling sector was key to reducing
the accumulation of waste in the environment.
“Gweshe Business Centre is expanding and I urge the local
authority to lure recycling investors,” she said. “This business centre links
with various areas of economic and tourism importance in Muzarabani, thus the
need to set up world-class infrastructure to complement this cause.”
Minister Mavhunga called for peace and unity during the
election campaign.
She rallied all party members, outgoing and incoming
Members of Parliament to join hands and mobilise five million votes for
President Mnangagwa and Zanu PF. Herald
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